Contributed Comments

Comments: The normal way to do the hand traverse is rtl, but there is a nice variation to this route that brings you up to where you can do it ltr, and skip the runout 5.8 traverse. Instead of doing the traverse, move almost straight up and slightly left in discontinuous cracks (I'm guessing 5.9) and then up a nice 5.8 crack until you get to the hand traverse. I've done this route once each way, and I actually think the variation is neater!

Comments: A cautionary tale .. A couple of years ago I climbed this route. Our party of 3 had just been through the 5.7 guillotine pitch, with 2 of us sitting on the ledges just above the exit from the chimneys, belaying the 3rd, who was leading the next pitch above. Suddenly there was a large natural release of rocks from the chimneys we had just climbed through (it is logical that we somehow loosened the rocks while we were climbing through, but none of us had noticed anything unusual). Fortunately it d... more >>

Comments: This is one of my favorite traverses but I think it's really overrated difficulty-wise. The most natural way to do it for me starts on the lip, moves down below the lip to a flake, rest after the flake, go almost straight up to a jug high on the lip, rest, move down off the lip to a hole and left on some slopers, then almost straight up again to another rest on big holds up high, then the crux section moving down off the lip again on crimps so low that it's difficult to keep off the slab below, ... more >>